Austin OKs resi development in commercial zones

Austin builders have a few more options on where to build housing thanks to a change in the city’s local laws.

The Austin City Council approved a change to the land development code that will allow residential properties to be developed on land zoned for commercial use, the Austin Business Journal. City staffers have said they estimate the zoning change could lead to more than 45,000 new homes in Austin.

“I do believe the work that was done today will allow us to expand opportunities to expand housing throughout Austin,” Mayor Steve Adler told the outlet. “There is a long way to go and it is my hope this next Council pushes through that.”

Developers who wish to build residential projects in commercial areas will still need to apply and meet certain criteria, like including affordable housing. More than 7,400 commercial sites are eligible for residential projects under the new code change.

The program could be a step in the right direction, but the current specifications won’t lead to as much of a boom in the production of housing as expected, said Scott Turner, president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Austin.

Developers will have to make at least 10 percent of rental units affordable for households making 60 percent of the area median income for at least 40 years.

For the units that are sold and not rented, 10 percent will have to be marketed to households making 80 percent of the area median income for at least 99 years. Since the median family income level for a family of three is $99,250 in Travis County, 80 percent is $79,450 and 60 percent is $59,550.

Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison also criticized the plan for not including more areas of Austin, specifically high-income neighborhoods.

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